Roger Federer announced on social media last week that he was ready to retire, and the fateful day has come: The 41-year-old tennis legend will take the court for the last time as a professional on Friday alongside Rafael Nadal in a doubles match at London at the Laver Cup, the international team tournament he co-founded in 2017.
Federer, who has been sidelined with a knee injury since reaching the Wimbledon quarterfinals in July 2021, is among the most successful players in the history of the sport when judged on his exploits on the court. . Off the court, however, there is no debate: Federer is the greatest tennis player of all time and one of the most financially successful athletes of all time, regardless of sport .
These are some of the main achievements of Federer’s historic career, as a tennis player and as a businessman.
16: The number of consecutive years that Federer has ranked as the highest-paid tennis player. He earned $90 million in the last 12 months before taxes and agent fees, according to Forbes estimates.
20: Federer’s Grand Slam singles titles, the third most in history by a man, after Rafael Nadal’s 22 and Novak Djokovic’s 21. Pete Sampras is fourth with 14. From 2005 to 2007, he reached ten consecutive Grand Slam finals, part of the stretch in which he scored 18 of 19. Federer holds the record at Wimbledon with eight men’s singles titles and also won an Olympic silver medal. in singles in 2012 and a gold medal in doubles in 2008, in addition to the 2014 Davis Cup.
103 – Federer’s ATP singles titles, the second most after Jimmy Connors’ 109. His 1,251 wins also rank second to Connors’ 1,274.
310 – The number of weeks Federer spent as the highest-ranked player on the ATP Tour, a record surpassed by Djokovic’s 373. However, Federer still holds the record for consecutive weeks, with 237, and was the oldest player to claim the ATP. Ranking No. 1, at age 36 in 2018.
$2 million: The amount Federer could command per event to play in exhibitions and smaller tournaments when he was healthy, reaching 3 million or more for certain events.
$90.7 million: Federer’s estimated earnings before taxes and agent fees for the 12 months ending in May, ranking him seventh on Forbes’ list of the world’s highest-paid athletes. Only about $700,000 of that total came from his tennis earnings. His $90 million total off the court makes him the best pitcher in all of sports, $10 million ahead of LeBron James and $22 million ahead of third-place Tiger Woods, according to Forbes estimates.
$106.3 million: Federer’s peak earnings total, from the 2020 Forbes list of the world’s highest-paid athletes. That was the only time in Federer’s career that he topped the list, though he has cracked the top ten every year since landing at No. 11 in 2009. His 2020 haul included 100 million endorsements and fees for appearances.
$130.6 million: Federer’s career total prize money since turning pro in 1998, the third-most ever, behind Djokovic’s $159 million and $131.7 million of Nadal. Incredibly, that represents less than 12% of his total career earnings before taxes and agent fees, with Federer earning an estimated $1 billion from endorsements, appearances and other business endeavors, according to Forbes estimates.
$300 million: The reported value of Federer’s clothing deal with Uniqlo, over ten years. He joined the brand in 2018 after leaving Nike, which had paid him an estimated $150 million over the course of two decades. Federer has a dozen sponsors beyond Uniqlo, including Credit Suisse, Lindt, Mercedes and Rolex, all of whom have been with him for more than a decade.
$1.1 billion: Federer’s total career earnings before taxes and agent fees, more than double Nadal’s $500 million and Djokovic’s $470 million, according to Forbes estimates. (It also far exceeds Serena Williams’ $340 million, the top mark on the female side.) It is the fifth-highest total ever recorded by an active athlete, according to Forbes estimates, leaving him behind only Woods, Cristiano Ronaldo, James and Lionel. Messi. Federer, who has a significant stake in Swiss shoe brand On in addition to his cash earnings, can now aim to become the fourth billionaire athlete, after Michael Jordan, James and Woods.
